The present invention is generally related to systems and equipment used in processing mass mailings of consumer related information. More specifically, embodiments of the present invention relate to systems and equipment through which external clients define presentation instruments for their customers as well as methods for using such.
A large number of companies and organizations provide presentation instruments to their consumers. The presentation instruments may be combined with other items. These typically include a piece of information related to the particular recipient at a cost related to the weight of the piece of information and associated packaging. This approach can be costly. To spread the costs, a company sending a primary piece of information may assemble information from other venders and includes that information in with its mailings. However, excess white space and weight space of the mailing may still go unused. Thus, among other things, there exists a need in the art to address the aforementioned limitation.
Yet further, providing a large amount of irrelevant or less relevant direct mailings may cause recipients to disregard all direct mailings through believing that they are generally irrelevant and do not warrant reading. Additionally, a large amount of direct mailings are detrimental to the recipients and the public in general as they must be disposed of, and ultimately end up in land fills.
Some companies that already send direct mailings have found it advantageous to include various additional information with such mailings. As just one example, various credit card companies provide offers with statements that are sent to credit card holders. An ability to provide increased control over the recipients receiving a particular direct mailing can thus be useful to such companies. One such company, First Data Corporation, the assignee of the present invention sends millions of statements out each month to credit card users. In addition to these statements, various additional information is included with at least some of these statements. FDC has developed its DecisionQuest product that allows a credit card company processing with FDC to choose which information that is to be included with a given statement. This product is used in relation to companies that process credit cards or other statements through FDC via FDC's mainframe, and statement schedules. The system does not allow for third party providers of information, or for companies that do not process credit card transactions via FDC's mainframe to utilize the system. The system allows for business rules to be defined by a client processing via FDC's mainframe. These business rules indicate an information set to be provided with a statement, and ultimately delivered on the statement schedule. While this system has reduced the number of poorly placed mailings as discussed above, it can only operate on a standard statement schedule, and in relation to companies fully incorporated into the credit card processing system. Thus, among other things, there exists a need in the art to address the aforementioned limitations.
Similar issues exist with respect to the format and design of presentation instruments (e.g., credit cards) and parameters defining the programs the presentation instruments represent. FDC's DecisionQuest product allows companies processing with FDC to individually target presentation instruments to specific customers. The product does not, for example, allow third party credit card companies to utilize the product. Thus, there exists a need in the art to address this additional limitation.